Goldman Sends Coloplast Higher With Buy Rating: Copenhagen Mover

Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Coloplast A/S, the world’s largest
maker of ostomy products, rose the most in 12 weeks in
Copenhagen after analysts at banks, including Goldman Sachs
Group Inc., recommended buying the share after yesterday’s drop.

Coloplast jumped as much as 3.5 percent, the largest
increase since Nov. 7 and today’s biggest gain in the Nasdaq OMX
Copenhagen 20 index. The shares rose 3.1 percent to 290 kroner
at 10:13 a.m. in the Danish capital, with trading volume at 56
percent of the three-month daily average.

Coloplast shares lost 3.9 percent yesterday after it cut
its sales forecast and reported net income that missed analyst
estimates. Goldman raised its recommendation to buy from neutral
saying Coloplast is among the three best-positioned medical
technology companies in Europe. Nordea Bank AB repeated its buy
rating and said the share will bounce back.

“The company has in the past disappointed the market a bit
with their earnings reports only to come back strong again,”
Nordea in Copenhagen said today in a note to clients. “That’s
why we keep our positive view on the stock.”

The Humlebaek, Denmark-based company has beat analyst net
income estimates in 17 of the last 32 quarters, according to
data compiled by Bloomberg. On average, the company has exceeded
estimates by 13 percent over the seven-year period and the stock
has almost quadrupled in value during that time.

‘High Gear’

Coloplast yesterday lowered its full-year sales growth
forecast in Danish kroner to as much as 6 percent from as much
as 7 percent previously. The company kept its estimate for
revenue growth in local currencies of as much as 7 percent.

“It’s important to note that the full-year sales forecast
in local currencies was confirmed,” Nordea said. Sales growth
will return to “a high gear in emerging markets,” in coming
quarters, the bank said.

Coloplast reported net income of 617 million kroner ($112
million) for its fiscal first quarter, the three months ending
Dec. 31. That missed the average estimate of 631 million kroner
a Bloomberg survey of analysts.